The Town Where It Was Forbidden to Die

In a small town in Italy, the people had a real problem. The old cemetery on the hill was completely full. There was no room left for anyone new. The town was small, the land was steep, and a new cemetery was not ready yet. The mayor had to do something, so he made a very strange decision.

I en lille by i Italien havde folk et rigtigt problem. Den gamle kirkegård på bakken var helt fuld. Der var ikke plads til flere. Byen var lille, jorden var stejl, og en ny kirkegård var ikke klar endnu. Borgmesteren måtte gøre noget, så han tog en meget mærkelig beslutning.

The mayor signed an official order. The order told the people of the town that, from that day on, it was forbidden to die. Of course, no one can really follow such a rule. The mayor knew that too. It was his way of showing how serious the problem had become, and his way of asking the town for patience.

Borgmesteren underskrev en officiel besked. Beskeden fortalte byens borgere, at fra den dag af var det forbudt at dø. Selvfølgelig kan ingen rigtig følge sådan en regel. Det vidste borgmesteren også. Det var hans måde at vise, hvor alvorligt problemet var blevet, og hans måde at bede byen om tålmodighed.

When the people read the notice in the square, they laughed. They knew their mayor could not stop death, but they understood his message. The funny story did not stay in the town. Newspapers picked it up, and soon people all around the world were smiling at the little Italian town where, for a while, it was against the rules to die.

Da folk læste beskeden på torvet, lo de. De vidste, at deres borgmester ikke kunne stoppe døden, men de forstod hans budskab. Den sjove historie blev ikke i byen. Aviser skrev om den, og snart smilede folk over hele verden ad den lille italienske by, hvor det, i en periode, var imod reglerne at dø.